They are looking to finalize and validate their upcoming ELITE tuner for this engine variant and need a car. just passing this info along as I was informed of this when chatting with one of their guys on the phone today about an exhaust kit. If anyone in San Francisco bay area is interested in some freebie parts hit them up
developmentcars@dinancars.com

 

Wish I lived in the bay area!!!

 

Any idea when the new elite variant will be out?

 

And what, exactly, is the 'new elite' for MINI?

 

DINANTRONICS Elite allows for multiple stages of tune dependent on associated hard parts and thus offers the most potential power out of all the DINANTRONICS offerings. The extra power over its successors is made possible by Elite’s unique ability to plug directly into the factory DME and having access to every signal entering and exiting the BMW factory Engine Control Unit. In the case of DME8 applications the Elite unit connects to more signals then the competition. Irregardless of which version is involved each type does much more then simply modify the various boost sensors. With this level of control the unit is able to be transparent to the engine management system and the functionality of on-board diagnostic systems is retained. Manipulating these signals with an adept hand all the while keeping an engine running at its best and with the most reliable power is what Dinan is all about. More importantly then the power that is garnered by connecting in this fashion however is the superior drivability that can be offered over other options. With more control, knock sensor activity is eliminated, and that means smooth engine performance just like it came direct from the factory. There is more to a tune than just cranking up the boost after all. Power needs to come on smoothly and in a predictable way to make the car as fun to drive at wide open throttle as cruising around town. With DINANTRONICS Elite it is your BMW, but reborn with new found acceleration and speed.

 

Saw a newsletter feed , Dinan released their elite tuner with the full warranty today !! Who hoo!!

 

Dollars.?

 

Dinan has really gone downhill. "Irregardless" is not a word.

 

how do you figure?.

 

In Steve's day, the ad copy would never have looked so amateurish. The Dinan brand was all about professionalism and perfection.

It's not just the use of a non-word, it's the whole thing.

 

Grammar, spelling and word usage isn't all that important if they can produce a good product.

Oddly they introduced the $300 module claiming they couldn't understand why competitors were charging so much for a similar device. And now they introduce a $900 version that competes with the $500 JB4.

 

Outside of 2 lines in that copy, Steve Dinan actually wrote most of that. It's been carried over for the most part since the first DINANTRONICS blurb he wrote over 3 years ago. Just saying...

Warranty is a big factor when talking about the ELITE.

 

Warranty is probably moot if your product is good and safe. How about lower price with add on warranty for extra money? Since my warranty is almost up l would be paying for no added benefit.

 

"Regardless" of all this, what does one get in terms of additional, measured performance gains? What's the 0 - 60 time improvement with the Elite over the Sport? How is turbo spool up impacted that differs from Sport? The increased torque and HP have been measured and charted on the Dinan web site (thank you!). What do those numbers mean when I step on the gas when the stop light turns green? What will I feel that's different than what I get with the Sport box? What can I measure?

I understand Dinan has been clear that there is additional refinement in engine management dynamics. Refinement that, specifically and measurably translates exactly how?

No accusing anyone of hype. Just want to know, warranty bonus aside, what does one get for the extra loot that isn't available in the Sport?

We're Dinan fans and Dinan users. If warranty doesn't matter to us, why should we pull out our wallets?? Seems a fair question. thanks.

 

Aside from the extra refinement and a smooth power delivery on the charts you can see exactly what the extra inputs are giving you--- more power. On the low end you are seeing improvements of 15HP/25TRQ over SPORT and 10HP/10TRQ gains over SPORT in even the worst of cases. In regards to 0-60 numbers and the like we do not test, nor keep any records for 0-60 times. We stick to simply reporting dyno numbers since they can be accurately repeated.

0-60 times can fluctuate greatly based on driver skill, reaction time, transmissions, tire temperature, tires etc. When you are talking about a couple fractions of a second difference meaning the difference between good and bad time and with so many variables that can be manipulated it really isn't a scientific measurement.

For example… Car and Driver universally gets the best 0-60 times for any car that is released. They do this by quite literally destroying the transmission in the process. They do things to eek out a few extra tenths no one in their right mind would do to their own car just for the best possible number. We strive to give realistic numbers and data, not data that is skewed.

The short of it is with more power all other metrics by default will improve assuming you can effectively put that power to the ground and the reaction times are consistent/repeatable.

ELITE offers warranty (the biggest difference over SPORT and what makes ELITE hold the moniker in our hierarchy of products) as well as more power and a more refined delivery courtesy of additional inputs that allow us more tuning ability and control.

With any luck our main test car owner will chime in although I haven't seen him on the forums recently and he can give some inputs on what hes seen in differences going from SPORT to ELITE from the visceral "feel" stand point. Outside of the main engineer hes probably had the most seat time in the 2 for comparison purposes.

 

Oh man. You lost that argument a long time ago. Language prescriptivists (a group which includes me) always lose over time. Everyone else evolves and we die off.

And if thou dost not believe me, then let history literally be thy guide.

 

Regardless of our efforts in regard to the devolution of correct usage, as regards my query to Dinan, I got this: "In regards to 0-60 numbers..."

We die off.

 

how much is the Dinan warranty coverage worth ?. to me an extra $400 bucks to have powertrain coverage on my car, installed and warranted thru a mini dealership is a small price to pay!

 

Then IMO the sport would be the best option in your case. The Elite would likely be best suited for the new car purchaser or one who just recently picked up his/her car- a year old or so

 

Good discussion of the "warranty" issue. Dinan has indicated that there should be no warranty worries with the Sport as they claim the DME keeps the engine within safe parameters. Not clear if the Elite pushes boost to further limits -- it seems it's more about how the extra power ramps up; smoother, quicker, and a bit more seems to be the Elite claim to fame.

On a front wheel drive, not sure how much more power one can efficiently get to the wheels off the line, but with AWDin the All4's it might be interesting...

Anyway, I believe all the Elite warranty does is, IF there is a failure that MINI warranty refuses to cover, and IF that failure can be attributed to the Dinan, THEN Dinan will step up. In such an instance, how Dinan's liability is determined is not clear to me.

But Dinan ALSO is claiming that there shouldn't be warranty issues resulting from use of their products because they stay within parameters that are safe for the engine.

So, how much is the extra warranty overlay worth? Does the Dinan warranty guarantee that a person with a warranty claim denied by MINI won't have a hassle? Do we have ANY documented history of Dinan covering a warranty claim that was denied by BMW/MINI? And if so, what was the failure that was attributed to Dinan equipment and why did the Dinan equipment cause the failure?

I love my Dinan Sport. I connected it with the attitude that it's buyer beware. So far so good.

 

all good questions. I cant speak for myself in this instance, but I do know as an owner of several BMW's and an active member of the BMW forums, there have been a couple cases at BMW dealerships where a warranty void was brought into question because it had aftermarket stuff on it (Dinan product). A couple guys had posted their experiences on the forums. I recall the customers had dialogue with BMW north America and Dinan directly and they worked out the details of warranty coverage , ultimately the car was repaired. not sure if BMW or Dinan picked up the tab, that was behind the scenes im sure, but both of those forum guys were very pleased at the outcome, hence one of the reasons I have used Dinan stuff ever since.

 

I've been given a heads up from both my contacts at BMW NA and my SA to return my car's powertrain to stock before bringing it in for even a regular service. An email has been sent to dealers alerting them that any piggyback boxes -including Dinan - will result in voiding powertrain warranties.

Before I brought my car in a few weeks ago to replace some trim pieces and engine mounts, I took 20 minutes and removed my power module and my intake.

 

Whoa!!! We need to get some clarification from Dinan!! When I bought my Sport Tuner in 2016 the word was that there were MINI and BMW dealers out there selling and installing these things. Is that no longer true? Is BMW/MINI walking away from the relationship with Dinan??

Dinan, if you're monitoring this, please clear the air!

 

See the other thread. https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ml#post4324886

 

Just spoke to a guy at a BMW Center who sells and installs Dinan every day. He confirmed nothing has changed. For the wimpy warranty Dinan Sport Tuners, it's buyer beware, but if a MINI dealer installs it, and for whatever yet-to-be-seen-in-the-real-world reason, something goes bump, the installing dealer and Dinan should work together to get everything resolved.

Clearly, if someone manages to blow a turbo or fry some internal engine parts and it can be proved the issue was caused by adding 3psi of boost from a Dinan box, and it's not a product with the elite warranty, there would be some back and forth.